Friday, August 17, 2012

Tye Devlin is an empath. Assailed by emotions from
everyone around him, Tye has learned to block out most of the “racket”. Yet, when
he meets cowgirl Lil Crawford, he has no defense against her hidden pain, for it
echoes his own sorrows.

Wounded by love, Lil guards her bruised heart behind a
tough shell. When a handsome stranger with an Irish brogue calls her beautiful,
she thinks he’s mocking her, but she secretly wishes such a man might truly
want her. Feuding families stand between the two and a perilous cattle drive pits
them against menacing foes as they fight their personal demons. Is love worth
the risks, and will Tye’s gift prove to be a curse or a blessing?

In this
scene, Lil Crawford attends a Saturday night social, escorted by a man her
parents would like her to wed. She can’t stand the arrogant galoot, but
pretends to let him charm her. The dance is about to begin.

* * *

Lil fought a
strong urge to shove Frank away. She hated the touch of his hands. This was a
bad idea. Give Frank Howard an inch of ground, and he’d try to take the whole
pasture.

She’d
purposely led him on, smiling and denying any interest in that black-haired
rogue by the door, and Frank hadn’t even questioned her sudden change of heart.
The swollen-headed fool probably thought she couldn’t resist him. Now she was
paying the price. And why? Just to show Tye Devlin she wasn’t without her
admirers. As if he cared.

The fiddler
finished tuning up. Beside him on a raised wooden platform, the caller shouted,
“Y’all ready to shake a hoof?” He got a loud ‘Yeah!’ from the crowd. “All
right, gents, grab your gal and get ready for a reel.”

Frank gave a
boisterous whoop, seized Lil’s hand and dragged her onto the dance floor. As
they lined up with the other couples, she glanced around and saw Tye standing
near where she and Frank had just stood. Had he meant to ask her to dance? Meeting
his fierce scowl, she swiftly looked elsewhere, flustered.

Fortunately,
Uncle Jeb had taught her how to dance a reel. Not risking another glance at Tye,
she got through it without making a fool of herself – or slapping Frank for the
way he continued to leer at her. When the dance ended, she clapped without much
enthusiasm.

She smiled tartly. “I’m just full of surprises, Frank.” She
glanced toward her mother and received a nod of approval. Her father and uncle
were on their way out the door, for a smoke no doubt. Not glimpsing Tye, she
wondered if he’d also stepped outside. With a woman, perhaps? The thought
caused a sinking sensation in her stomach.

The caller announced a waltz. Without asking if Lil
wanted to dance with him again, Frank grasped her arm and swung her toward him.
Incensed, she resisted. Just then Tye stepped out of the crowd.

“Might I have the pleasure of this dance, Miss Crawford?”
he asked, smiling at her and ignoring Frank.

Tye drilled him with a hard blue glare. “Indeed? Well
now, I’ll hear that from the lady’s own lips if ye please.” He grinned in
challenge. “Or even if ye don’t.”

Frank cursed and made a move toward him.

Anger drove Lil to step between them. She faced Frank,
fists on her hips. “I’m not your property, Frank Howard. And I’ll dance with
whoever I please.”

He gaped at her. “But yuh said yuh don’t even like –”

“Never mind what I said. You don’t own me.” Turning her back
on him, she scowled at Tye. “Well, you want to dance or not?”

“By all means,” he said, flashing a wicked smile and
offering his hand.

Accepting it, she saw him throw a taunting grin past her
and heard Frank’s furious snarl. Then Tye led her out to the strains of Sweet Genevieve.

Frank vanished from Lil’s thoughts the moment Tye took
her in his arms. A barrage of dizzying sensations shot through her. Where he
touched her, even through layers of clothing, her skin burned. The aroma of
shaving soap, mixed with his own subtle, manly scent, stirred her blood. His
broad, black-cloaked shoulders filled her vision, and she felt an absurd
longing to lay her head on that inviting expanse. When she raised her eyes, he
smiled down at her in a caressing way that made her feel, well, pretty. That
was nonsense, of course.

“Have ye forgiven me at last, colleen?” he asked. “For
what I said that day when we rescued the calf, I mean. I’d take back every
cruel word if I could.”

She lowered her gaze to his shirt front. “I said some
things, too. Reckon we’re even.”

“I think not, but so long as ye don’t hate me, I’m
content. Now tell me, who is this Frank Howard who wishes to keep ye all to
himself?”

“He’s a friend,” she said falsely, “from up Fort Worth
way.”

“’Twould seem he considers himself somewhat more than a
friend.”

Lil stiffened. “Listen, I agreed to dance with you to
show Frank he doesn’t own me. That doesn’t give you the right to nose into my
business.”

His mouth curved downward briefly, but then he nodded. “As
ye say, colleen.” He tilted his head, studying her. She was about to tell him
to quit staring when he spoke. “And will ye also object if I ask ye, as I did
once before, if Lil’s your full given name?”

She blinked at his unexpected change of subject and
shrugged. “It’s Lily, like you guessed that day at the barn raising, but nobody
ever calls me that. It doesn’t suit me.”

He laughed softly. “Ah, but I think it does, for you’re
as beautiful as your namesake.”

Lil forgot to breathe for a moment. Was he mocking her the
way he had that day last summer at the creek? Or . . . was it possible he
really meant what he said, both now and back then? Suddenly unsure, she felt
herself blush and sent her gaze skittering away like a terrified rabbit
searching for a hidey-hole.

“Y-you must be addled. I’m not even pretty.”

He sighed and murmured in a deep, husky tone, “Lily,
Lily, ye know not your own worth. You’ve the face of a Greek goddess I once saw
pictured in a book. Your skin glows as if kissed by the sun, your brown eyes
spark with fire when you’re angry and call out to me in my dreams. And your hair
. . . ah, colleen, it makes me think of moonlight on dark water. My dearest
wish is to bury my face in it and drink in your sweet scent.”

Never had a man said such things to Lil. Melting warmth
enveloped her as she lifted her head and got lost in Tye’s radiant blue eyes. She
parted her lips, but no words came out. Instantly, his gaze swooped down to her
mouth, and it shocked her to realize she wanted him to kiss her. What was left
of her rational mind cried out in protest.

“Don’t talk nonsense,” she whispered, sounding breathy
and unconvincing even to her own ears.

“Nay, Lily, ’tisn’t nonsense, ’tis the simple truth. And
there’s more, much more I wish to say . . . and do.”

She gasped, suddenly fearful.

“Ah, luv, don’t be frightened,” he said quickly. “I’d
never hurt ye, I swear.”

Thanks so much for sharing a bit of Dashing Druid with us, Lyn!

Be sure to come back for a special article series on Self-Publishing tips and expertise later this month from Lyn Horner!

Thank you, ladies! I'm so glad you enjoyed the excerpt from Dashing Druid. Sorry I didn't get here yesterday to reply to your comments. I've been out of pocket, cat sitting for my daughter while she's out of town. Riding herd on two kittens is exhausting, but they are so cute!